StellarFi is a bill-pay manager that helps members build credit by charging a subscription ($4.99 or $9.99) to manage and pay recurring bills—including rent, subscriptions and utilities—and reporting those on-time payments to Experian, Equifax, TransUnion and Innovis. The company does not require credit checks or deposits, does not charge interest, and claims members see an average 26-point score increase in the first month; the average user score at signup is 580. Launched in late June, StellarFi scaled quickly via affiliate partnerships, neobank contracts and SEO, finishing the year with over $2 million in ARR and hitting $1 million ARR in 134 days. As a public benefit corporation, StellarFi focuses on financially disadvantaged communities and intends to build a marketplace to link members to lenders and provide access to capital through partners. The firm is still developing its mobile app and aims to “conquer the mobile experience” to drive engagement and lender access. Operationally, StellarFi reported zero defaults so far but has encountered significant fraud attempts and says it uses sophisticated algorithms to detect and quarantine fraudsters. StellarFi is a Public Benefit Corporation building a credit-building and bill-pay app that consolidates everyday bills and reports monthly payments to the three main credit bureaus. The company targets the 132 million Americans with poor or no credit and enables users to build credit through rent, utilities and other routine payments. StellarFi also offers rewards and cash back that users can apply directly to connected bills. The startup launched a public beta on March 14, 2022 in Austin, Texas and plans comprehensive money-management tools, partnerships for loan and credit card offerings, and financial literacy resources. StellarFi was founded by Lamine Zarrad, who previously founded neobank Joust (acquired by ZenBusiness) and served as Head of Product at ZenBusiness. The company recently closed an oversubscribed $7M initial funding round to deploy its platform and expand access nationwide.

Total raised

$22M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Series A

Latest activity

Mar 2023